Abstract

Mark Knights examines similarities and differences between Whig and Tory interpretations of history in the first age of party. The two shared similar methods, outlooks, and anxieties despite differing content: the Whigs saw a popish conspiracy against the rights, liberties, and property of the individual, while the Tory interpretation rested on the belief that there had been a prolonged and coordinated attempt to undermine church and state. Looking at the Tory point of view as presented in the Secret History of the Calves Head Club, Knights urges that polemical works, despite indulging in exaggeration and caricature, invited readers to engage in legitimate dialogue and debate. Because they provoked the scrutiny of fact, they likely encouraged the development of historical method—even though such an outlook was also allied to fiction.